Razer is about to turn your iPad Pro into a full-fledged laptop. Well, the keyboard part at least.

The company on Thursday released a new keyboard case for Apple's 12.9-inch iPad Pro, which promises to give you the same kind of satisfaction you get when typing on a full-sized mechanical keyboard. The $169.99 peripheral connects to your iPad Pro via Bluetooth, and features a detachable polycarbonate protective case as well as a metal kickstand, which lets you prop your tablet into any position that's comfortable.

Each key is individually backlit, and you can select from 20 different brightness levels for typing in low-light conditions. In terms of battery life, the accessory offers approximately 10 hours of juice on a single charge at maximum brightness, and 600 hours when backlighting is turned off, Razer said.

Underneath the surface, the keyboard uses "ultra-low-profile mechanical switches," which deliver the same performance and feel as a full-sized mechanical keyboard, according to Razer, but with a form factor slim enough for a mobile device. The company called the component the "world's first" ultra-low profile mechanical switch, and said it has other applications in mind for it beyond this case.

"We're commonly thought of as a company that makes phenomenal products for gamers, but to design the very best products, we've had to innovate from the ground up — even from each individual component such as mechanical switches," Razer co-founder and CEO Min-Liang Tan said in a statement. "We're excited about the potential of our Ultra-Low-Profile Mechanical Switch and look forward to exploring other applications in addition to the mechanical keyboard we've designed for the iPad Pro."

About the Author

Angela has been a PCMag reporter since January 2012. Prior to joining the team, she worked as a reporter for SC Magazine, covering everything related to hackers and computer security. Angela has also written for The Northern Valley Suburbanite in New Jersey, The Dominion Post in West Virginia, and the Uniontown-Herald Standard in Pennsylvania. She ... See Full Bio

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